Orange, CA 92867
(714) 639-1020
Open 24 hours
Listing on Yahoo! Local
Listing on Ask.com's Citysearch
Official Site
Gustavo Arellano, in the O.C. Weekly, referred to Taqueria de Anda as the Carl's Jr. of Mexican food but after pulling up in the parking lot of their Orange location I was thinking it was more like the McDonald's of Mexican food, especially with the playground out front. Then after stepping inside and seeing their rather abbreviated menu I started to think they were more like the In-N-Out of Mexican food. Here you've got tacos, burritos, rice, beans, and drinks. The variety comes from the different types of meat that can be stuffed into the tacos and burritos.
Taqueria de Anda has seven types of meat from which to choose: carne asada (steak), al pastor (barbecue pork), lengua (beef tongue), cabeza (beef head, but I believe it is mostly brain - somebody correct me if I'm wrong), pollo, carnitas, and buche (fried pork stomach). The tacos are very small and are made to order, or more like as you order them. I decided to try one out-of-the-ordinary meat and two "ordinary" ones ("ordinary" being relative to my own experience) so I ordered lengua, carne asada, and carnitas, and some rice. My friend Chris reversed the ratio by ordering carnitas, lengua, and buche, and some beans. Everything was acceptably fresh and we both agreed that the "unusual" meats didn't taste all that unusual.
Taqueria de Anda's tacos didn't quite fill me up but I should've known up front that they wouldn't when I saw how small they were. They've got a salsa bar with the requisite mild, medium, and spicy salsas, plus salsa verde, radishes, escabeche, and some citrus fruits that looked like a cross between lemons and limes. They weren't exactly chartreuse, but more of a yellow background with streaks of greens. Made me think of when Sprite used to advertise that it had the "Great Taste of Limon." And they have Horchata Ole! to drink, so that's a definite plus. And if you ever get the urge at 3 in the morning to load up on some tacos keep in mind that this location is open 24 hours, 7 days a week.
I've been debating whether to give Taqueria de Anda three or three and a half Speedy Gonzaleses. Right now the angel on my shoulder is saying to go for the high end.
I LOVE TAQUERIA DE ANDA ESPECIALLY THE ONE ON FOURTH STREET BECAUSE I GET TO SEE ALL THE LOCALS COMMING FROM THEIR BAILES AND WE GET TO LAUGH AT THEIR MEXICAN WAYS OF DRESSING!!
ReplyDeleteWOOOPY!!
BUT MY FAVORITE THING THERE IS THE BURRITO DE LENGUA!!
-JESSICA
My mother is Mexican and taqueria de anda is the closest thing that comes to her taco's. Very authentic. This is not the kind of taco restaurant that you'll find in a white neighborhood. What you get is a REAL Mexican taco! I've been there twice in the past week!
ReplyDelete-Chris (Irvine)
Thanks for the comment. With a name like "Chris from Irvine" you could almost be me.
ReplyDeleteI need to give this place another try. I went here on Gustavo's recommendation in the Weekly. It wasn't bad but it also wasn't terribly memorable. Just middle of the road taqueria.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. If you are in the mood for a bunch of tacos (and sometimes I am) then this is a good place. If you want a meal with a lot of variety to it you might look elsewhere. I'll still be going again and hopefully covering at least one other location.
ReplyDeletethis is the most underrated burrito place ever.....
ReplyDeleteI didnt like it much on my first visit- but now im absolutely ADDICTED... there are great subtle flavors in the meats. and the salsas are nice and hot. 4 speedies
Cabeza (beef head) ISN'T brains. It is the muscles from the outside of the beef skull - similar to other meat. Sesos is brains. That is a separate order.
ReplyDeleteBob
Thanks for the correction.
ReplyDeleteAnd it's not de Anda...it's De Anda! I should know it's my last name!
ReplyDeleteThanks.
ReplyDeleteI used to ride my bike as a kid to the Fullerton location on Valencia. It used to be just a small shack-type restaurant. They have since built a much larger building. The best on the menu for me is the Al Pastor taco with everything y mucho red sauce! The Al Pastor burritos are great too with more food for the $$$.
ReplyDeleteViva Taqueria De Anda!!! You are the best! I still pick up 10 tacos on the way home from visiting my parents in Fullerton. 4 when I get home & 3 for the next 2 days for lunch.
Bill (Huntington Beach)
DO NOT EAT HERE UNLESS YOU ENJOY BLOWING YOUR GUTS OUT YOUR A55 AND SPRAYING YOUR BATHROOM WALL WITH VOMIT AT THE SAME TIME, FOOD POISONING REALLY SUCKS AND THE LACK OF SAFE FOOD HANDLING IS THE CAUSE.
ReplyDeletehad the same thing happen to me eating here!
ReplyDelete